Last
season, Jason Demers came really almost out of nowhere to be a
featured player on the team. He hadn't even gotten a
call-up ever before. Are there young players in your mind we should be
keeping an eye on that may make some noise in
training camp (and) surprise us in terms of contributing to the
NHL Sharks this next season?

I wish that I had a chance to
watch Worcester more than I do, but I don't because once our season's on I'm
pretty much consumed with that. Obviously they had a good year: They
went fairly deep into the American Hockey League playoffs.

We saw the fruits of development at our
level and I think that if you're looking for that next group of
young players who are gonna make an impact on the Sharks, you already had a
taste. And right at the top of that list is--in no particular order--Jason Demers, Logan Couture, Jamie
McGinn. And those are three offensive players, and in the case of
Demers, (an) offensive-minded defenceman that were able to
contribute (in) various degrees throughout the year.

Couture came on really strong the bigger
the games got. Some of the plays he made during the Detroit
series--I mean, you talk about pressure for a young kid! And he is still just a
kid. You know, you're playing the Detroit Red Wings at Joe Louis Arena and
you're behind in the third period, and you score a huge goal to help
your team come back and win in overtime. Those are huge
moments of development.

We talk about how a player develops all through the year in the American
League, but can you imagine how his confidence and his career changed
forever on that one goal? I mean, he knows now that he can do it, and his
coaches know that they can put him in a situation where they need a big
play out of a big player, and he came through for them.

And it's just one of those
defining goals where you look back, you never really know how a
player's career is going to go going forward. If he turns out to be a
key player for the next ten years for the San Jose Sharks, you'll look back
on that series and that goal and that game as being a catalyst moment
for Logan Couture.

Those are the three that
stick out to me as the guys who showed that they belong. And that will also have something to do with the changes that the organisation
makes going forward on free agents they decide to keep or trades they decide
to make. Those three players make the decisions tougher, because (they) have shown that they deserve a place in the NHL.

But that's a good thing: That tells you
(that) you drafted well and that your people in Worcester are developing your
players well, so that when they get here, they make a difference. Beyond those three it's tough for me.

I'd throw Thomas Greiss in
that group although because, going back to what you said about
Nabby--him playing so much--we just didn't get a chance to see enough of Thomas
Greiss. Going forward if--if Nabby is--is not re-signed by the Sharks or
if Nabby decides--you know, Nabby's a free agent, he doesn't have to sign with
the Sharks if they offer him a contract. He can go anywhere he wants. It's his
freedom, too.

But I think there's a chance we're gonna see a
lot more of Thomas Greiss next year, and discover why the Sharks
feel so highly about him. He hasn't really had a chance to show
his stuff yet in the way that I think he hopes he can. And maybe next year will
be the year we get to see a lot more of him and find out why he
was the number two goalie in the organisation.